


Under The Lotus Leaves

by jkateel



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-21
Updated: 2014-03-21
Packaged: 2018-01-16 10:58:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1344955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jkateel/pseuds/jkateel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Amell wants to watch the rain; Zevran comes up with a clever (and drier) way to do it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Under The Lotus Leaves

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a somewhat-random conversation with [todisturbtheuniverse.](http://archiveofourown.org/users/todisturbtheuniverse)

The first drop of rain made her look up in wonder, but the crack of thunder that followed made her yelp and jump right into her companion’s side. Zevran ‘oofed’ with a grin, and she felt her cheeks warm up.

"My apologies," she murmured, and then looked back up as the thunder rolled past. The rain started to come down faster and faster; the little wisp that followed her everywhere seemed to dart between the drops.  She smiled breathlessly — when she had been at Ostagar, there had been no time to appreciate the rain with all that running-for-their-lives bit. Now, however…

"Should we head inside, my dear Warden?" Zevran asked. When she looked at him, he gestured toward the doors of Arl Eamon’s estate. 

"Must we?" she asked, before catching herself. "If you think it best, Zevran, but—”

The words got stuck in her throat. Her lack of experience would seem so silly to him, she thought. Especially over something so  _trivial_ (but yet so  _wondrous)_ as rain.

"For the sake of your robes, and my brand-new leathers boots, I do think it is best," he said amiably. His smile remained even as his brow furrowed. "Do you like the rain?"

Amell felt her cheeks warm again. “A bit,” she admitted. Her eyes fell on the stone walkway, where puddles were already forming. Rain danced on the surface of the water, ripples left in their wake. She huffed through her nose, and then glanced at the elf. 

Zevran wouldn’t laugh at her, she thought. Well, he would laugh, but not  _at_ her. “At the Circle,” she began slowly, only to hesitate. Zevran stepped closer toward her when another round of thunder made her shiver. “When it rained, we couldn’t go outside, or open windows. The Templars never let us.”

She glanced away again, remembering a joke another mage had made once.  _All that rain, all that metal, all our sparkly fingers…_  

Amell knew the moment Zevran understood when he let out a small sound. “Well,” he said then,  smile turning into a smirk. “Every Antivan knows they must take any and all opportunities to appreciate the finer things in life — or the wetter things, in this case — and that it is even more pleasurable to do so with fine company. Shall we?”

He held his arm to her. She frowned curiously but took it, following him as he led her over to the large pond near the walls of the estate. They had explored it earlier, Amell taking great pleasure in watching the fish float by underneath a sea of lilypads. There were other plants with large padlike leaves growing near the edge of the pond —  _lotus leaves_ , Amell recalled — Zevran pulling out a dagger to cut two of the thick stems. He handed her one of the giant leaves, and then took his own, holding it over his head. “For the sake of robes and boots,” he said with a wink.

The leaf was so large and thick, it barely lost shape as the water dripped off it. Amell laughed at that, holding her own leaf up over her head. The patter of the water on the leaves was fascinating to listen to; it took up her attention as Zevran lead her over to a stone bench that overlooked the pond. He undid his coat to lay it on the bench, and then held her hand as Amell took a seat. He smiled and sat beside her with a contented sigh and a smile.

"Here we go," he said, tucking his feet under the bench. "Now this is how an _Antivan_ appreciates the rain.”

Her little wisp floated under the leaf much like the fish in the pond had done; their leaves bumped together as Amell giggled and leaned against him. “It is a great way,” she said, smiling.

He smirked, wrapping his arm around her waist. “I have the best ideas, no?”

When she felt so cozy under her leaf and against his side, Amell could only agree. “The best,” she whispered, and together, they watched the rain.

**Author's Note:**

> If you've never seen how lotus leaves repel water, it's like mercury sliding along glass. It's really neat to watch.


End file.
